Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. Raises Position in Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS)

Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Free Report) by 601.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,181 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,870 shares during the quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd.'s holdings in Morgan Stanley were worth $254,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. IAG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Morgan Stanley in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. 84.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Morgan Stanley

In related news, Director Robert H. Herz sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.32, for a total transaction of $95,456.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 96,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,545,403.20. This represents a 0.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Andrew M. Saperstein sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.00, for a total value of $4,800,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 335,765 shares in the company, valued at approximately $40,291,800. This trade represents a 10.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 50,868 shares of company stock valued at $6,019,548. Insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Morgan Stanley Stock Performance

NYSE:MS traded down $2.59 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $141.15. 6,620,391 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,701,346. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $130.13 and its 200-day moving average price is $126.27. Morgan Stanley has a one year low of $90.94 and a one year high of $145.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.11. The firm has a market cap of $226.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.30.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 11th. The financial services provider reported $2.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.39. Morgan Stanley had a return on equity of 14.98% and a net margin of 12.98%. The business had revenue of $17.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.02 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Morgan Stanley will post 8.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Morgan Stanley announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, July 1st that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 8.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Morgan Stanley Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $0.925 per share. This represents a $3.70 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley's payout ratio is presently 43.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on MS shares. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $130.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Morgan Stanley in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Morgan Stanley from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Morgan Stanley from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $138.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $144.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Morgan Stanley currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $135.54.

Morgan Stanley Company Profile

Morgan Stanley, a financial holding company, provides various financial products and services to corporations, governments, financial institutions, and individuals in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. It operates through Institutional Securities, Wealth Management, and Investment Management segments.